12U Boys County Cup Report Regionals and Nationals
Day 1, saw the Kent team of Hugo Coquelin, Alexi Chastang, Matthew Pickering and Oliver Evans play against the Channel Islands in the first round of matches. Kent got off to a flying start and very quickly took the first rubber with a win for Oli. Within quick succession, Matthew and Hugo both picked up wins against their opposite numbers and Kent won the tie with the doubles to spare, which Kent won also. Second round saw the Kent Team in action against Sussex. This was a much-anticipated match however, it became apparent that Kent were far too strong for and quickly ran away with all the matches and took another 4 love win.
Day 2 saw Kent play surrey in the usual grudge match. Once again, Kent played at a different level and intensity and took a 3 love lead in singles and winning the doubles for a satisfying 4 love win.
Last round saw Kent play Gloucestershire in the round robin. At this point, Kent were so confident in their ability as they hadn’t dropped a set all tournament. The team did not disappoint and demonstrated their quality and took another 4 love win and booked our place in the National Finals in Bolton.
National Finals
Day 1 saw Kent up against a very strong Warwickshire team. Oli picked up our only singles win which meant Kent had to win the doubles to save the tie. It was not the case and Kent lost in a tie breaker to seal defeat .All was not lost as Kent were up against Lincolnshire. All the team were pumped and wanted to make up for the close loss in the previous match. It was a straight forward match with little resistance from their opposition and a good win for the team. Next round was Hampshire, which ended up as a marathon match as Kent were down in the singles but levelled the match at 2 rubbers each but unfortunately lost in the deciding tie break and the loss.
Kent were now in a playoff match for 7th position against West Scotland as Lincolnshire defeated Hampshire which put them through ahead of us in 5th place. Hugo played at no.1 but couldn’t seem to find the gear needed to stay with his Scottish opponent and lost in the match tie break. Matthew Pickering played a solid match with intense hitting and took a comfortable win in straight sets. Oli Evans was rested for the singles, so a highly charged Alexis Chastang took his place on court and battled hard. Alexis unfortunately could not take his chances but gave his all and narrowly lost the rubber. Oli and Matthew played the deciding doubles rubber and soon dominated the match and the win which put Kent at 2 rubbers each with a shootout to play for the tie! Oli and Matthew pushed forward playing aggressive doubles and took a strong net position at every opportunity and closed the match out in style resulting in Kent taking 7th place overall.
It was a great experience for the team, by seeing what top tier tennis is and I am sure all players will learn from their wins and losses over the 4 days. A huge thank you for the usual support from the parents and Captains making the trip enjoyable and creating a great team environment. Hopefully back next year to compete for title.